Pintia (Vega Sicilia) Toro D.O. Tinto 2020 750ml

#73 in Top 100 Wines of Spain, 2024. Another combination of freshness and profoundness from Toro. Blackberries, graphite, ashtray, sandalwood, cocoa powder and dark olives on the nose. Fresh-veined, chalky tannins tighten the palate, with a nervy backbone. The tannins extend to a lengthy finish. Ripe but fresh. Drink from 2026.

The 2020 Pintia is from a powerful year of concentration, so they were very careful with the harvest date, did a softer vinification trying to extract less and included amphorae and less toast in the élevage. It's opulent and juicy but gentle. The wine reached 15.5% alcohol and has a pH of 3.9 with 4.4 grams of acidity. It fermented in stainless steel and oak vats with indigenous yeasts. It was a very warm and dry vintage in Toro, with a heat wave before the harvest, so they had to rush to pick the grapes; and still the wine is richer and more powerful, even though the amphorae helped them contain the sensation of ripeness in the wine. It has a heady and ripe profile, very aromatic and showy, with notes of very ripe berries, prunes and decayed violets with a faint volatile twist. It matured 70% in new barrels, 10% in used barrels, 10% in stainless steel and 5% in clay pots. It's full bodied and lush, with abundant, slightly dusty tannins. It was a ripe and powerful vintage for Pintia, but it evolved nicely in the glass, showing less of its ripe side with time, which to me is a good sign. Some 14,304 half bottles, 209,009 bottles, 6,645 magnums and some larger formats were produced. It was bottled in August 2022.